


Garrett's Take On Love (And Other Things)

by Gwen_Myers



Category: Simonverse | Creekwood Series - Becky Albertalli
Genre: Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pansexual Garrett Laughlin, Waffle House
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-19
Updated: 2019-01-18
Packaged: 2019-10-12 11:58:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17467121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gwen_Myers/pseuds/Gwen_Myers
Summary: Garrett Laughlin had always been sure about everything. He knew that he would make the soccer team. He knew he would get into Georgia Tech. And he knew he was straight. Or at least, he used to know that.It's the summer after his sophomore year of college, he's back home until August, and of all the people he could have ran into from high school, it just happened to be Cal Price. And despite his past beliefs of his sexuality, and the fact that he is dating Morgan, Garrett is pretty sure that he's in love.





	Garrett's Take On Love (And Other Things)

**Author's Note:**

> Today (Jan 18 in my time) is Bram's birthday! So, I decided to finish this first chapter up just in time! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BRAM GREENFELD!

**Chapter One**

Garrett, for one, had no idea that this would happen. He had never even had an inkling that he might not be straight. At least not until he had run into an old classmate, Cal Price. It wasn’t as if Garrett had never seen him before, in fact they had run into each other many times throughout high school, they just hadn’t talked. But earlier, at the Waffle House, they had talked. And for the first time, Garrett realized that he might like guys. As well as girls, but that didn’t make the whole Morgan complication any better.

It had started out as a normal day spent back at home. He had back in Creekwood for a couple weeks now, but Greenfeld and Spier had just flown in over the weekend. Greenfeld and him had planned to meet at the Waffle House, sans boyfriend, despite Greenfeld’s protests. Of course, Garrett’s persistence against bringing Spier along was exactly what had Bram running late. And then, in walked Cal Price.

Garrett was bored, to say the least, and he did not like being bored, not one bit. So, he stood up, thinking, _‘Hey, Price probably remembers me,’_ and called out, “Hey, Price! Is that you?” And Cal had turned, and smiled, and Garrett’s knees had practically buckled beneath him, because, holy shit, that smile was breathtaking. Garrett stumbled a bit before he smiled back, asking, “Want to join me?”

Garrett led Cal back to his booth, and they sat across from each other, and Cal smiled that brilliant smile again, asking, “So, what have you been up to at Georgia Tech?”

Right as Garrett was about to answer, the waitress came to the table, probably thinking that Garrett was finally ready to order, now that Cal was here. He had told her his predicament not fifteen minutes earlier, and she had gracefully let him wait. Not wanting to seem rude, he orders, “I’ll have scattered, smothered, and covered waffles with sausage and hash browns, and orange juice. Thank you.” He grimaces slightly, because Morgan always tells him that he eats too much, and he doesn’t want Cal thinking that as well, but covers it up with a smile quickly. Cal orders cheese and eggs, raisin toast with apple butter, and black coffee. He doesn’t make a note about how much Garrett eats. It’s refreshing.

It takes a pointed look from Cal for Garrett to realize that he still has a question to answer. He takes deep breath, and replies, “So, at the moment, I am getting my bachelors in Music Technology, playing on an intramural soccer team, and in this student piano organization called PianoForte. Plus, I help out with the Pride Alliance, PAUSE, and the LGBTQIA Research Center.” Cal seems shocked, and Garrett tries to cover up the blush spreading across his face by asking, “So, Price, where did you end up going?”

“How do I know where you go, but you not know where I ended up going?”, Cal laughs. Garrett rolls his eyes, and makes a hand motion for Cal to just get on with it, but also laughs, that way he doesn’t seem rude. He hates coming off as rude. Cal continues, “I got to the Savannah College of Art and Design. I’m getting my bachelors degree in Production Design, and I’m planning to get my masters in Cinema Studies there as well. I’m in SCAD Queers and Allies, Scripted, and Drawing Inc.”

“So, we have similar interests,” Garrett said, and then immediately wished that he hadn’t, because it sounded a tad bit desperate. Especially for someone who is supposedly straight, and talking to someone of the same sex. Garrett stumbled over his next words, which were, “I mean, we’re just going for similar degrees, and we’re both involved in LGBTQIA+ stuff, and -”

His words were stifled by laughter, which Cal wasn’t even trying to hide. Garrett glared, but Cal refused to stop laughing until a few minutes later, after which he said, “Garrett, calm down. I don’t mind having a lot in common with you. In fact, I wouldn’t mind finding out more things we might have in common.”

Cal had said it in such a flirty tone that Garrett could not help but blush, which was why he was so glad when the waitress set down their food. He smiled at the waitress, a pretty blonde named April, and almost wished it was her he was thinking about rather than the boy across from him. He pushed both thoughts out of his head, reminding himself that he was in fact, dating Morgan. Smart, nice-looking, sometimes-insensitive-but-overall-nice Morgan. Garrett shook his head furiously, at least on the inside; he seriously needed to stop thinking.

To keep Cal from flirting (?) with him again, Garrett asked, “So, last I heard, you were with Spier’s sister, right?” He was sure they had gone to prom together, was sure that he had seen them together a lot in the months before as well. What he wasn’t sure about was whether they were still together or not.

“Well, maybe that’s the last you heard, but Nora and I were always a casual deal. Sure, I liked her, and she liked me, and we took advantage of the time we had; but in the end, we both knew that we would split when I headed off to college. We both wanted to put our all into the lives we had, not the lives we could have, and didn’t want to bother with shaping our lives around each other,” Cal replied, in between bites of food. He took a sip of his coffee after he finished talking, but his eyes never left Garrett’s.

Garrett countered this with his own relationship, “Well, Morgan and I got together during the summer after graduation, with us both staying in Georgia and all. And, well, I can’t say it’s a great relationship, but it’s comfortable. You know, mostly.”

“Actually, I don’t know. Every relationship that I’ve been in where I haven’t been happy, I’ve just ended. I guess comfortable just isn’t enough for me. I also think that you both being in Georgia isn’t really a reason to be together. I mean Nora and I are both in Georgia, hell, she just graduated, and she got into my school, but I don’t plan on getting with her anytime in the foreseeable future,” Cal answered, now looking worried. After a moment, he continued, “So, why can’t you call it a great relationship?”

“I mean, I don’t know if you heard about the drama our senior year involving her and Abby and Leah, but basically she made this insensitive comment about Abby only getting into UGA because she’s black, and – ,” he saw a look on Cal’s face that showed a mix of disgust and horror, “- don’t worry, she apologized repeatedly, and promised it was a one-time slip, but then - ,” he stopped.

“But then it wasn’t?”, Cal asked. Garrett nodded, which led to Cal saying, “First of all, I know all about that drama. Other than her obsession with Nick, that’s all I heard from Taylor all senior year. Could be the reason that we haven’t talked since that summer. Second of all, may I ask what she’s said. Like, how insensitive does it get?”

“Well, the worst one was when she found out that my roommate was an ex-communicated Mormon, and gay. She made so many shitty jokes about his religion, and even more about him taking advantage of me. They haven’t talked since. But a close second was when her friend Anna came out as asexual, and she said something about how she was so tired of everybody feeling the need to label themselves, and ‘Wasn’t anybody just straight anymore?’. But she would always apologize after, and well, yeah,” Garrett said, as he slowly realized how shitty all of this sounded. How none of Morgan’s apologies felt worthy of the things she had said. And how horrified Cal looked.

Cal sighed, closing his eyes in what looked like a mix of pity and unbelieve, and said slowly, “Look. I know you didn’t ask for advice. But I’m going to give it to you anyways. Hearing what I’ve heard about Morgan, I feel like you need to either talk to her about how shitty the things she says are, or… break up with her. And whatever you decide, even if you choose to not take my advice, I’m here to talk. And I will always tell you that you, Garrett Laughlin, deserve a girl who is just as amazing as you are, if not better. If that’s possible.”

 _Maybe not a girl_ , Garrett thought.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes as Cal finished eating, which was conveniently just as Greenfeld was walking in. The two other boys exchanged smiles, and Greenfeld took the spot that Cal had just been occupying. April took the other boy’s order quickly, refilling Garrett’s orange juice as she did, but as she left, Greenfeld smirked in a way that made Garrett cringe.

“So, what happened to the _no-boyfriends-whatsoever_ rule, hmm?”, Greenfeld asked.


End file.
